Back to Basics — France

Martina 23. 5. 202610. 6. 2026

ERASMUS+, Key action 1: training course

Dates: 23—30 May 2026

Venue: Issor, Pyrenean France

Czech team: 3 participants – youth workers

Please read the info-pack.

Hosting organisation: Association La Villa

Project report:

Our czech team has participated in an Erasmus Training course called “Back to Basics” in a beautiful remote village Issor in the Pyrenees mountains. During one week, we had the opportunity to revisit our personal and professional Why’s in youth work. As one of our fellow participants from Portugal said: It was not just a training course, but a reminder of something essential. In a world that constantly pushes performance, productivity and endless self-improvement, this experience brought me back to something much simpler: presence. What stayed with me most was not a specific method or framework, but the realization that meaningful human connection does not always emerge from trying harder. Sometimes it emerges when we stop performing and allow ourselves to simply be present.

Example of a day program: DAY 6

We went by the river and closed with the final outdoor activity which was collecting some natural objects from the ground or in the water to build/create a beautiful offering to nature. It was magical. We used rocks, sticks, flowers and more. It looked like a tree. When it was ready we stayed in a circle around it and said one word or a sentence that we felt connected to what we did and how we felt during the process of creation.
Once inside, we did a session where Urska and Barbara showed us and talked about the next steps after the training, for example the follow up activities or the SALTO page and new projects available.
To conclude, we did the last final circle with our final evaluation of the week. We picked a card from many on the floor and said why we chose it and how our week has been overall.
All evening free to connect, enjoy, and celebrate together.

Special thanks to the organizers again, for putting so much work into making the project possible. I think it will have ripple effects on our lives and leave the world a better place. Thank you so much for the opportunity. 🙂

Zuzana K.